Area Code 879

About Area Code 879

Area code 879 is a geographic telephone area code assigned to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. It operates in the Newfoundland time zone and was first introduced in 2024. Overlay for 709. Newfoundland and Labrador.

Within Newfoundland and Labrador, area code 879 operates alongside 1 other area code. The province's 2023 population estimate is 541,391. Newfoundland and Labrador's capital is St. John's and its largest city is St. John's.

When you receive a call from a 879 number on your Caller ID, the call originated from a phone number assigned to the 879 area code — but be aware that Local Number Portability (in effect since 2003) means the caller could be physically located anywhere in the US or Canada. Area code 879 only confirms where the number was originally assigned.

Where is the 879 area code located?

Area code 879 is assigned to St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, in the Newfoundland time zone. The state of Newfoundland and Labrador uses 2 active area codes, and 879 is one of them. Calls placed from the 879 area code originate from numbers assigned by NANPA — the North American Numbering Plan Administrator — and the 879 prefix appears on Caller ID for both landline and wireless calls placed from this region.

The Newfoundland time zone observes Daylight Saving Time, shifting from UTC-3.5 to UTC-2.5 in summer. The local time shown above is always current, so you can quickly check whether it's a reasonable hour to call back.

What cities and counties use the 879 area code?

The 879 area code serves 9 notable cities, listed below in order of population. The largest city in the 879 territory is St. John's (113,948 residents in St. John's County).

• St. John's, NL — 113,948 residents (48.1% of 879 numbers)
• Corner Brook, NL — 19,333 residents (8.2% of 879 numbers)
• Conception Bay South, NL — 26,674 residents (11.3% of 879 numbers)
• Paradise, NL — 14,579 residents (6.2% of 879 numbers)
• Mount Pearl, NL — 23,120 residents (9.8% of 879 numbers)
• Gander, NL — 11,880 residents (5% of 879 numbers)
• Grand Falls-Windsor, NL — 13,263 residents (5.6% of 879 numbers)
• Labrador City, NL — 7,412 residents (3.1% of 879 numbers)
• Stephenville, NL — 6,540 residents (2.8% of 879 numbers)

Phone number format in area code 879

All phone numbers within area code 879 follow the standard North American 10-digit format:(879) NXX-XXXX. The NXX is the central office prefix (also called an "exchange") and XXXX is the subscriber line number. For long-distance calls within the NANP, dial 1 + 879 + NXX + XXXX. From outside North America, dial your country's international access code, then 1 (the NANP country code), then the 10-digit number.

If you need to verify whether a specific 879 number is wireless, landline, or VoIP, you can use our reverse phone lookup tool. Be aware that number portability means the area code no longer guarantees the caller's physical location — only where the number was first assigned.

History of area code 879

Overlay for 709. Newfoundland and Labrador.

The original 86 area codes were assigned by AT&T and Bell Labs in 1947 as part of the North American Numbering Plan. At the time, rotary-dial phones meant codes with lower digits (like 212 for NYC, 213 for LA, 312 for Chicago) were given to the largest cities because they took less time to dial. Today's area code assignments still reflect those early choices, even though touch-tone and cell phones made the original reason obsolete.

Is the 879 area code safe to answer?

Area code 879 itself is a normal geographic code with no elevated spam risk. That said, scammers can spoof any area code — including 879 — so if you don't recognize the full number, let it go to voicemail and verify the caller's identity before calling back.